Shadow Keeper
by Redmissy100
Summary: a mysterious girl with a mysterious past. that's all i'm saying. read and find out. lots of pairings if i can manage it. Flinx, Hotgent, RobStar, BBRae, others...maybe... rated cuz i don't know what'll happen
1. Who are you?

**Wow. i know. i'm been gone forever and i have explaining to do. Sadly, for any of you reading my _Dark Seas_ story, it will not be finished. i just blanked out. absolutely no ideas. Anyways, on to this story. i really won't be updating cuz since school started i've been really busy, but i really want your guys advise on this. i will post questions at the end. It's in first person by my oc.**

**Disclaimer: i do not own Teen titans. don't rub it in.**

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><p>The streets were nearly empty as I walked, unsure of my direction or destination. Of course I knew this city by heart—as I did any other I lived in, or even visited—and I knew I was facing east because of the setting sun behind me, but I felt completely lost.<p>

I shivered and tucked my arms closer to my body, despite the warm summer evening.

Hours had passed but I still walked, unseen, unheard, unknown. I let my body lead and the swirling thoughts in my head seemed to cease. They were still there, I knew, but I stopped trying to decipher them, or anything else.

Suddenly I stopped, and my brain snapped back to attention, telling me the time (4:52am), how I'd gotten there (left of Maple, right on L street…) where I was, but most importantly, who was in the apartment building I stood in front of. And I knew it was a very bad idea to be here.

Every instinct told me to run, but my body was in control again, leading me to the park across the street and sitting me in the shade of a large tree.

Time passed slowly, but too quickly at the same time. It was nearly eleven when two people I recognized all too well came out of the building.

Neon pink hair. That was the first think I saw. Followed by her pale gray skin and cat-like eyes. Then my gaze turned to her companion. Flaming red hair and blue eyes.

That's when I knew it hadn't been my body that had made me stay there; it had been my mind. That stupid part of my mind I'd been suppressing for years.

I wanted to stay here until they left, to go back home—ha! Me? A home?—but instead I was pushing my emerald green hair from my eyes and stepping forward.

"Jinx," I heard myself say, as I reached the sidewalk, and saw the bubble-gum haired girl turn to look at me.

"Sen?" her pink eyes looked surprised and confused. "What are you doing here?"

"I don't know." I gave her a purposeful look and she nodded in understanding. "I should probably leave." I said, glancing at the boy beside her, but I felt the need to say one more thing before pulling up my hood and going. "Jinx?" I asked to make sure I had her full attention.

"Yeah?"

I gave her a small smile and pulled up my sweatshirt hood. "I'm not mad at you." I gave no time for response, and instead turned a corner and disappeared into the crowd.

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><p>"Who was that?" Wally asked after I was gone.<p>

Jinx gave a sad smile in the direction I'd disappeared. "An old friend." She refused to say more, but instead turned back the way they'd been heading. "Come on, let's go."

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><p>"I've never heard of her." Robin said, flipping through the criminal database. "There isn't a girl with green hair, or anyone named Sen."<p>

Kid Flash sighed in confusion. "I wonder who she was." He thought aloud as Robin closed his computer down. The boys gave each other a look of mutual confused wonder.

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><p>"Where were you!" a voice boomed the moment I opened the door. Jack was waiting on the couch.<p>

"Out." I said, striding past.

"Sen!" he yelled after me as I walked toward my room. "Sen! Senka!" that stopped me dead in my tracks. I turned slowly to look at him.

I felt my hair heating up and fading red and saw Jack halfway down the hall. He gulped at the fire in my eyes, but held his ground. "Call me that again," I gritted my teeth. "And you won't live to regret it." I stormed into my room and slammed the door behind me.

I sighed as I plopped down on the bed, feeling my anger drain away with fatigue and looked around. It was such a normal room at first glance. All the furniture was cherry wood; the dresser with a large mirror attached; the bed with a dozen pillows. There was a chest in the corner containing extra blankets and a bookshelf along one wall.

But I knew that that mirror was equipped with a palm scanner; I knew under all those pillows were several daggers and a bodkin; I knew under the blankets there was a false bottom containing an arsenal of weapons and that there was a compartment in the bookshelf holding an all-black suit.

Sometimes I pretended the posters on them weren't hiding explosives and that the stuffed animals around the room didn't have cameras built in. sometimes I pretended I was normal.

…And then I laughed at myself for it.

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><p>My eyelids were drooping and my brain desperately wanted to shut off, but for some reason I couldn't sleep, couldn't even lie down. So instead I changed and slipped out a window.<p>

I felt my hair change to blonde before I even set foot on the street. I was wearing jean shorts and a green tank top over a bathing suit and carried a red and gray stripped tote bag. I could've been a twin to half the girls out here. No one thinks twice about some blonde in California.

I hadn't really been planning to go to the beach, despite my attire, but I ended up there anyways. Shrugging, I dropped my bag into the sand and kicked off my shoes. I quickly headed for the water. I wasn't going to stay long, but the salty liquid felt nice on my skin.

My mistake however, had been sticking around to let the sun dry me. Because I fell asleep as soon as my body hit the sand.

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><p><strong>okay, so for anyone being all confused, Sen <em>is<em> a criminal. i will explain further into that in future chapters if i continue this. so heres what you guys need to tell me:**

**A) what do you think? easy right?**

**B) oc pairing? who do you think? i am planning on her going good. (and it's not going to be some stupid lightspeed think with different characters. I'm more creative than that)**

**C) do you want me to tell you her powers in an authors note, or do you want to be surprised while reading?**

**D)Should i bother to continue this. i'm not gonna if no one cares.**

**E) any suggestions about anything regarding anything. seriously. i just want to know your honest opinions and ideas. even if it's small and you think it's stupid.**

**F) i like reviews. i really do. and i want you guys to tell me what you want. even if it's two words like "please continue" or whatever. But i also love long reviews more. write me a ten page essay if you want. it'd make my day.**

**So, please tell me what you think! And any suggestions, questions, ideas, comments, corrections, I'll even take flames. just click that button and type 'em up. **

**Thanks,**

**Scarlet kitty**

**(ps. that was a joke on my name. you guys won't get it, but i do! :P)**


	2. Sunscreen buddies

**Woot! new chapter! It's not all that exciting, but it does have to do with the plot (not that i have one XD). anyways, a heads up on a second oc in this chapter. you guys are going to hate me and be all "this is such a kid flash/jinx thing". He has red hair and blue eyes. But i want to make a point that there is a _reason_ he has red hair, and blue eyes...well i like blue eyes. sue me.**

**for anyone reading this, i have no intentions of hurting anyones feelings. Any stereotypes and other things that could be possibly hurtful are not meant against anyone. i have nothing against blondes, california, red-heads, albinos or other. No ones complained so far, but i want to point out that stereotypes are simply for this story and have nothing to do with my view on anything. (sorry for that rant. i just felt the need to tell you guys that anything said that could be consided offensive in any of my writing was not meant to be so)**

**Dedication: to Moonlit Kit, for being my very first reviewer on this. (bet you didn't expect that huh?) also to nicky122, dude305, and amelia delling for being the most awesome and supportive reviewers ever. :) (...and now you think i'm weird for going all mushy on you. just read the story. *hides face behind computer*)**

**Disclaimer: Teen titans. not mine. its a combination that makes a very sad Redmissy.**

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><p>Waking up was probably the least-fun thing I'd had to do in a long time. Because I was covered in sand, itchy from said sand, and really, really sore. Looking down at myself I saw pink splotches covering my legs and stomach and scrambled for my bag.<p>

Pulling out a bottle of sunscreen—it's California after all. I don't leave the house without it—I emptied the whole thing and rubbed it all over before quickly pulling on my shoes and shirt and hurrying to get out of the sun. I ducked into the first store on the boardwalk, which happened to be an ice-cream shop, and sat down in a booth away from the windows.

_Okay universe, lesson learned; falling asleep at the beach isn't a good idea if you're an albino. Got it. Won't have to tell me twice._

I ordered a banana split while I waited. No way was I going outside again until it either became dark, or they kicked me out. Hopefully the former rather than the latter.

Somewhere between falling asleep and entering the shop, my hair, I noticed, had turned red. _Good. People will just think I have fair skin if they notice the sunburn._ I glanced hesitantly down at my arm, surveying the damage. It wasn't good. It was definitely, most certainly, absolutely _not_ good. Biting my lip and wincing I poked gently at my arm.

"Here," A voice said, pulling me out of my thoughts. A boy with red hair and blue eyes slid into the seat across from me and handed me a bottle of green goop. "It's aloe Vera. I have the same problem. You know you should probably be more careful next time you go to the beach." He smiled sympathetically.

"Thanks," I said hesitantly, taking the bottle. I squirted some in my hand and rubbed it on my arms, feeling the cooling sensation immediately. The goop was rather slimy, and left my skin feeling a bit strangled, but it was worth it. No more pain! …okay, well less pain.

I sighed in content. "Thank you. That's so much better."

He laughed a little. "No problem. I'm Mark, by the way." He extended his hand, which I shook, wincing slightly at his fingertips on the back of my hand.

"I'm…Ashley." Don't ask me why I said it. I have absolutely no clue in this dimension or the next couple hundred. I just did. It sort of slipped out before I had any idea what I was doing. But by then it was too late to take it back. "But, uh, most people just call me Sen." I added on awkwardly.

And that is when my super awesome ninja skills started kicking in. Because little old Sen being awkward was about as rare as a blue moon in the middle of the day turning orange. In other words; it simply did not happen.

I was aware of everything; it was exactly 8:26 (the clock on the wall behind me, which reflection I saw in the napkin dispenser, said so), Jack was most likely freaking out because he noticed I had disappeared by now, and that the boy in front of me had no idea who I was. This was probably the most disturbing piece of information yet.

It wasn't that I was all that well known, quite the contrary, nobody had any idea what I was besides my team, but he was sitting there, and he was talking to me. And I suddenly felt bad. He was so normal; just a guy talking to a girl he met at the local ice cream shop. He wasn't someone I was targeting, he wasn't someone to use as a tool, he wasn't someone I had mental files on and angles on how to play him. He didn't have any connection to my world, the one filled with lies and back-stabbing, besides the one sitting right in front of him. And he didn't even know it.

8:37. the sun was setting by now. I should be able to go without killing myself. I waited for a lull in the conversation and casually said that I'd better go before I got in trouble. He offered to walk me, I refused, so on and so forth until about ten minutes later I was walking out of the shop alone and heading as quickly as I could for home.

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><p>Curling up in bed that night I had too many thoughts playing tag in my head. But somehow I managed to bury my head in the pillows, pull my quilt over me, and fall into unconsciousness. It wasn't much of a help though, because the dreams that plagued me that night were anything but fairytales. And I knew that each nightmare held the truth, even if it wasn't something I was ready to face.<p>

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><p><strong>okay. your turn to write. answer the following questions. the little button down there really wants to be clicked.<strong>

**A)what do you think? generic question. i know.**

**B) oc pairing? so far no ones commented on that, and i was wondering if you guys wanted me to have a superhero, or maybe pair her with Mark. I'm not a mind reader. sorry. you guys gotta tell me yourselves.**

**C) suggestions regarding anything whatsoever. i want to read the little tiny details that people would find awesome in my story, or ideas you think would be stupid, or the big, general ideas, or what i should have for lunch monday. i really just want to know what's going on in your head while reading my story.**

**D) also, do you guys want me to reply to reviews directly on here. cuz i usually do that, but my a/n are already like a mile long. just tell me so and i can reply to just you specifically, or everyone.**

**E) i like reviews. short ones, tall ones, fat ones, small ones...wait...now isn't Dr. Suess time. anyways... write me two words or an entire essay. just tell me what you think. :D**

**so, to answer questions and junk from last chapter... i will not be putting her powers in an a/n. unless someone really wants me to, in which case i will put up a spoiler alert for anyone wanting to be surprised.**

**The button has fallen in love. please make the button happy and feed it. it likes words. lots of them. and so do I. so make us both happy and click it. the button thanks you.**

**~Scarlet Kitty**


	3. The rush

**Woot! new chapter! sorry i havn't updated, im back in school (the first two chapters were posted over the weekend) and i feel really crappy cuz i'm sick. And thanks to my wonderful reviewers. to hear people say they wish my chapters were _longer_ is about the most wonderful thing an author can hear. And i know the last chapter was pretty lax. i just needed to give you guys background and a feel for the charators. this one should be longer...plus it's about a hundred words longer (i'm working on it okay). And also know that longer chapters mean slower updates. hopefully it'll be worth it.**

**So...now that i'm done with that rant...enjoy the story**

**Disclaimer: i own it about as much as i own you. which would be...none at all. sucks doesn't it. i'm sure you'd all love to be my slaves. mwahahaha! *glances from side to side to see it anyone noticed the manical laughter***

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><p><em>Get over it.<em> I thought harshly to myself as I sat in the sand watching the deep blue waves rise and fall, as if the ocean were breathing. Small specks showed above, but nothing more; the stars drowned out by the city lights. _Just go home. What are you even doing here?_

It was a good question. What _was_ I doing sitting all alone on a beach, getting my favorite jeans dirty, in the middle of the freaking night? _Being stupid, that's what. Your cold, and wet, and should've gotten over it weeks ago._

I really should've. I wasn't really one to hold onto stupid dreams and desires. It was a realist, a pessimist, always saw the glass half empty, whatever you wanted to call me; I didn't dwell on the inevitable or unfixable. And that was exactly what this was.

It was mid-September by now and the night air was colder than the chills that constantly ran through me, but instead of being inside drinking hot mint tea and reading I was waiting for something I didn't even know. I'd already tried reasoning with myself, but there was some part of me that didn't want to move. And that part was stubborn as hell.

So what exactly hadn't I gotten over? I wasn't entirely sure. But after that day at the ice cream shop, I was extremely conflicted about everything I'd taken for granted before. A feeling only drowned out in the adrenaline rush of a good heist. Crawling through air vents and twisting between laser grids had a way of doing that sort of thing.

But afterwards there was always…something. A weird emptiness in the bottom of my stomach once the high was gone. And no matter how many paintings I stole, or how much jewelry I fenced, that hole kept getting bigger after each job, each heist. For a while I thought maybe I'd let it, maybe it would continue to grow like a black hole and swallow me up completely, then I wouldn't have to worry about it, or anything else again.

I sighed and glanced at my watch. Nearly three a.m. I pulled myself to my feet and began my walk home. I had a jewelry store to case tomorrow, and a meeting with the manager to see the vault. I needed as much sleep as I could muster.

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><p>Going undercover sucked. It was probably the worst part of my job there was. Early the next morning (well, about ten 'o clock, so early for me) I stood in my bathroom wearing a designer dress (with shorts underneath of course. Doing a roundhouse kick is rather difficult if you're worried about your skirt flying up) that not only made me look rich, but older (a good thing too considering I was already small for my age). My black heels sat in the corner as I refused to wear them until I had to, and my hair was faded to brown.<p>

Okay, so dresses I could deal with, and heels, and even the stupid makeup. What I really hated about going under cover was the colored contacts. Because, while my hair changed color and the right clothes could make me look entirely different, the one thing that I couldn't easily change about myself was my eyes. Normally I kept my hair in my eyes, but today that wasn't an option; I had to look sophisticated and confident, which meant keeping my head high. It also meant making plenty of eye-contact. Something I normally avoided.

My hair changed color, yes. My eyes? Not so much. And I had freaking red eyes. Albino, remember? This was exactly why I had to stand there and put green tinted contacts in my eyes. And let me tell you, they weren't the most comfortable things in the universe.

Sticking the contact case and solution into my purse, I pulled on my heels and left. Adrenaline, here I come.

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><p>"They're very beautiful pieces," I said to the store manager, glancing around the jewel covered vault. Everywhere you looked there were gemstones, and necklaces, and bracelets, you name it. I'd been chatting with the manager for half an hour, and was in the middle of the rush, fighting back the urge to grab at a particularly beautiful pigeon blood that caught my eye.<p>

But it was something else my attention suddenly fell on; something silver and small. And something that was blinking faster and faster. "Run!"

I hadn't even realized what I was doing until after I pushed the store manager out of the vault and felt the blast of energy as I fell to the ground and covered my head with my hands.

_I can't believe this is how I'm going to die._ As stupid of a thought it was, it was the first one that popped into my head after everything had settled. I was buried under a pile of freaking cement, and had extreme pain in several places in my body. A choking sound emitted from my throat as dust filled my lungs.

_Someone was walking on top of me!_

There were noises from above and every time a scuffling noise came, dust flitted on my face and filled my lungs. I knew sleep was trying to claim me, but I couldn't tell the darkness around me from the one trying to overtake my conscious. It didn't matter either way, because a few agonizingly slow minutes later, which I spent listening to major scuffling above me, I was gone.

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><p><strong>Soo...yeah. evil cliffy, i know. but review me any questions, comments, concerns, suggestions and other. hope you enjoy :)<strong>

**Btw, for anyone who doesn't know a pigeon blood is a ruby from burma, and is really big and pretty.**


	4. no hospitals

**Yes, i know. you guys hate me now. so sorry for the slow update, but i got a little stuck of this chapter and then life decided to kidnap me and make me super busy. plus i had this major essay to write-which i'm pretty sure i failed anyways-but whatever. to make it up to you i made this chapter extra long...er well, thats the story i'm going with (i actually didn't know where to stop once i started, but it works out better for you guys)**

**so yeah, i was sick, and then got super busy, and then had bucketloads of school work. and i also got sucked into this fic by silver miracles. It's called under the Rose and all flinx lovers should read it. (although i really shouldn't say cuz im still in the middle of reading it) but right now im really tired, so im not writing anything else. enjoy the chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I own my laptop and a flash tee-shirt. other than that, no i don't own teen titans.**

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><p>It was the fresh (ish) air, and light that made me drag myself to consciousness. Someone was dragging me out from under the debris. "I found a girl!" the boy called—the voice was certainly male—to another person, holding me in his arms.<p>

I moaned and blinked my eyes slowly open. "Hey girly," the boy said, noticing I was awake. "it's okay, we're going to get you to a hospital.

This was the exact sentence that banished any remaining grogginess from my mind. My eyes shot wide open and I gave a lurch, feeling pain spread from points on my body. The cold, calculating part of my brain told me exactly where they were (right shin and ankle, left knee, several ribs on the left side of my body, right wrist), and how bad it was (broken leg, dislocated knee, cracked ribs, sprained wrist). However, that part didn't matter right now, and neither did the part that yelled at me to stop, amplifying the pain. Right now all that mattered was getting away.

Sirens sounded from far away.

_Pain is a state of mind…it doesn't hurt…it's just your imagination…it's a state of mind…pain is a state of mind…_

I scrambled on my hands and knees, but the boy caught me again, and I recognized him from somewhere, but agony clouded my mental files. "Hold on there, it's okay."

"No," I cringed mentally at the feebleness of my voice. "No hospitals." _Hospitals ask questions…you can't have people asking questions. Not one's who'll check up on your answers…_

"Hey, it's alright. Look, you're really hurt, so you need to go to a hospital."

The sirens were growing louder, coming closer.

"No!" I jerked up again, my voice becoming more hysterical than the forcefulness I was going for.

"What's going on?" another voice asked, "Is she alright?" Another boy appeared, one with spiky black hair and a mask.

"I need to go home." I tried again to get away.

"She says she doesn't want to go to a hospital."

They were almost here. The sirens were loud. _So loud…_

"Let me go!" I pushed away from the boys and used my better arm and leg to pull me along the floor. That was, until I came face to shoe with someone else.

A girl with gray-ish skin like mine and purple boots. "She's lost a lot of blood." The girl noted emotionlessly, and I numbly noticed paramedics coming in. I pushed one away.

"No hospitals," I muttered again, but I couldn't remember why anymore, just that it was absolutely vital I didn't go to a hospital; that I would rather die first.

"We should take her to the tower," the girl said, purple eyes boring into my skin. "If she won't go to a hospital, it would be best if we treat her."

My head was woozy, and my hand gave out beneath me, causing me to fall onto my stomach. "No hospitals," I breathed before a rush of heat forced me back into sleep.

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><p><em>My head…<em>

I slowly blinked, my eyes immediately assaulted my ridiculously bright ceiling tiles. I touched the tips of my fingers to my temple, feeling a bump.

_Suck it up. You have to figure out where you are._

Ignoring the pain as best I could (only possible through years of practice) I sat up and allowed my brain to soak up every detail possible about the room I was in. suddenly all the details filtered back; the store, the explosion, the…titans. Crap!

_Why do my eyes hurt so much…?_

Shoot. I grabbed my bag (thankfully left next to the bed) and quickly pulled the green contacts out of my eyes and stuck them in their case with the solution.

My eyes felt immediately better. But this little escapade unfortunately did not go un-noticed by a certain speedster who happened to be coming in the door.

Classic movie realization scene. I swear. We stared at one another for what seemed like forever, blue and red eyes boring into each other. "Wait!" I said, the moment I saw he was about to bolt. "Please," I added quietly.

I don't know how he heard, but that one word seemed to stop him in his tracks.

"Just—just let me explain," he still looked doubtful so I gestured toward my broken leg. "I'm not going anywhere." He gave me an assessing look so familiar I couldn't help but break into a smile. "Did you learn that from Jinx?"

"Alright. Explain then. Let's start with why you didn't want to go to a hospital."

The smile slipped from my face faster than I could blink. "Hospitals—they ask questions. They want to know who you are, where you're from," I swallowed. "Who're your parents? They ask a lot of questions I don't like to answer, okay."

"Why don't you want people to know who your parents are?" He asked as if it were the craziest thing in the world.

"Look at me," I scowled harshly. "Do I _look_ like I come from a happy family? What did you think? I have two _loving_ parents, maybe a playful dog? Guess again." I sat back and pursed my lips. Family had never been a popular subject with me. Last time Jack brought it up he had a black eye for a month.

"How did you meet Jinx?" he asked suddenly, pulling me out of my depressing black hole of thoughts.

"School." I answered shortly. "We went to HIVE together." He nodded, but seemed to be holding back a question. "Spit it out." I said with a roll of my eyes. "Might as well get everything out of the way."

After another second debating he softly asked, "What happened to your parents?"

I should've let him talk himself out of it. "Nothing _happened_ to them, and if something did I don't know about it. My mom left after I was born; didn't want a thing to do with me. As for dad…" I trailed off, unsure how to continue.

_"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" I didn't know what I was even apologizing for._

_"Quit crying you…" Who would've thought a four year old kid could learn so many cuss words._

I pursed my lips and dove right in, the 'Band-Aid' method. "he was abusive. Lashed out verbally and physically." _Don't cry, don't cry…_

It was too late. I hadn't ever said a word aloud, not even my teachers at HIVE knew much about my past. And telling it to someone else made it so real, it wasn't some dream from forever ago I could push to the back of my mind. "You wouldn't believe how vulnerable the human body is, how many ways there are of hurting someone." My voice cracked, and I knew right then I'd gone too far, but it was too late. I couldn't take it back, couldn't make it not-real.

I reached out and grabbed the closest thing to me—a bottle of pills—and threw it as hard as I could across the room. It hit the wall and the plastic cracked. "I _hate_ him! I hate them both!" My self-pity turned to anger. It was easier that way, to go from one extreme to another.

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><p><strong>alright, i'm still tired so i'll make this quick. review with questions coments thoughts and other. Also suggestions. i actually have no real idea where this is headed so someone might need to help me out with that.<strong>

**byez,**

**Scarlet kitty**


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